‘7 Little Johnstons’: Amber and Anna Fight About Her Plans to Move out in Tense Exclusive Sneak Peek

Amber Johnston just can’t seem to connect with her 21-year-old daughter Anna when it comes to her decision to leave home and move out, despite her mom’s concerns about her lack of a full-time job. In a PopCulture exclusive sneak peek of Tuesday’s all-new 7 Little Johnstons episode, a discussion about finances ends in tears and a walk-off as the two struggle to find common ground with Anna’s decision.

While Amber presses her daughter on the ability to cover bills 100% on her own, Anna is clearly frustrated with her mom’s questioning. “What I’m saying is I can [pay bills] between [the] online shop and my job right now,” she explains. “I mean, I wouldn’t want to move out if I didn’t know I was good with my money.” It’s a frustrating answer for Amber, who tells the cameras all her “legitimate” concerns about Anna’s lack of a full-time job are met with Anna shrugging them off.

Anna, meanwhile, simply wants “a little more excitement” from her mom about taking the next step in her life. “Part of my frustration with Mom is when Mom talks to Elizabeth about moving out, she’s very excited about it,” the young woman tells the cameras. “They are always talking about it, but it’s the other way around with me. It’s not, ‘Oh, I’m excited about you moving out, but I hear some worries.’ It’s just ‘Anna is not ready to move out, blah, blah, blah.’”

The mother and daughter begin to go back and forth about Anna’s finances and track record when it comes to moving, but when Anna brings up her mom’s lack of enthusiasm, Amber responds, “Honey, I don’t give parties because we’re moving.” Anna is clearly frustrated with her mom’s probing, at which point Amber decides to walk away from the conversation, telling her, “Anna, this is not good, I refuse. Not doing this.” Sitting at the table alone now, Anna begins to cry, saying to herself that she “didn’t do anything” to warrant that kind of reaction from her mom.

Earlier this month, Amber opened up to PopCulture about showing the difficult parts of her relationship with Anna on TLC. “Anna, it’s an ongoing, growing journey with her,” Amber explained at the time. “We go a little bit deeper this season regarding the last 14 years with her. … I’m not some hard-ass mom who only likes some of my kids.” Anna has “grown up a lot” over the last year, Amber continued, and each of her five children has had their “struggles” and “celebrations,” as it is with any family not being filmed for TV.

“We have to keep life as real as possible,” Amber explained of sharing less pleasant moments on camera for everyone to see and judge. “We are everyday people, and we happen to be little people, but the show is not something we wanted in order to create celebrities out of us.” Don’t miss 7 Little Johnstons, airing Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on TLC.